Edge Wealth Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Edge Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 0.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 80,306 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Waste Management makes up approximately 3.6% of Edge Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Edge Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $17,117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Seed Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth about $215,000. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.5% during the first quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 83,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $17,757,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the period. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.2% during the first quarter. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC now owns 7,460 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,590,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 0.4% in the first quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 17,582 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,748,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its stake in Waste Management by 18.7% in the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 18,836 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,015,000 after purchasing an additional 2,961 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE:WM traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $212.65. 97,885 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,708,396. The firm has a market cap of $85.29 billion, a PE ratio of 34.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $207.78 and its 200-day moving average is $199.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $149.71 and a twelve month high of $214.54.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. Waste Management’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Waste Management from $207.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. CIBC increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $207.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $211.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $217.61.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.